Gu Temple Li Ying Lu Study

Goahm Lee Woong No (1904-1989) was born in South Choongcheung Province in 1904. He was taught Moonin painting by Haigang Kim Gyu Jin. He entered the art society with his painting "Blue Bamboo" showed in the Korean Art Exhibition. He went to Japan in 1935,learning modern art from XXXX,one of the southern painters of Japan,on the other hand studying western paintings at XXX Institute. In those days Goahm liberated himself from the traditional Four Gracious Plants and painted realistic landscape paintings observing the object realistically. In 1957,he made his opportunity to advance into the international stage by displaying his paintings at the Modern Korean Art Exhibition sponsored by the New York Worldhouse Gallery. In 1958,Goahm went to France invited by Jacque Lassaigne,a French commenter who had been interested in his paintings. At that time his paintings had escaped from realistic trend and reached the stage of "expression of thought on the experienced reality",which he himself called "semi-abstract expression". In 1964,he established the Oriental Art School in the Cernuschi Gallery,an oriental gallery of Paris,and taught more than 3,000 students for thirty years. On the other hand,he studied modernized letter abstract with the basic model of calligraphy.He had been suppressed politically for several reasons,and showed a fresh painting subject with the 1980 Guangjoo democratization movement. He had been working furiously for his lifetime throughout the modern history of Korea,from the movement to be liberated from Japanese colonial rule,the Korean War,to the pain of democratic movement. That's why he has been regarded as a most representative Korean painter.His constant passion for art made him grow up to hold fast to his own way even in the difficult and turbulent situation of Korea,remaining great achievements in the history of modern art.The art world of Lee Woong No,starting from the pre-modern Moonin painting of Haigang Kim Gyu Jin at the entrance to art,through the period of realistic study,the period of semi-abstract of expression of thought,reaching at least to the stage of semi-abstract,abstract art that fused imitation,sketch of nature and expression of thought,takes the tradition as its fundamental category,but at the same time innovates it to fit to the situation of the new era and new life. His works,therefore,have a certain difference from several painters at his time. At the same time I think it will be helpful for the younger students who specialize modern art to study and analyze the modern art of Lee Woong No with his paintings sorted into six stages,for he had endlessly tried to give change to his paintings combining oriental material and spirit with the western trends throughout his life,living in Paris from his entrance to art up to his death and perceiving the influence of environment.